[Chapter One]

Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, be--

 

Gentle and thin piano-fingers reached over and silenced the annoyed alarm clock. The digital  numbers read 7:00 AM on a breezy and quiet Saturday.

 

Why did I set this for so early?

 

Koda sits up, taking in a deep breath and leaning forward. Of all things she could have dreamed about, why that?

 

She gripped the blankets in front of her. Were they wet? She rolled her fingers over the sheets and took in a sigh of relief. Good, they weren't. That was going to make her morning easy.

 

She turned to the left, setting her feet on the cold wood floors and stood up. With a yawn she stretched her arms out to the sky and ran her fingers through her hair.

 

Knotted.

A hard yank on the strands.

Ow! Knotted bad. Okay, so where did I put that hairbrush?

 

Quietly, she tottered over to the nightstand, her nightgown flowing against her bare & battered legs. Her hands felt around for her hairbrush, but it wasn't there.

 

Did I travel with it? It's got be around here somewhere...

 

She felt around the nightstand, then made her way over to her bed, feeling the covers and checking under the pillows.

 

C'mon, where did it go?!

 

She threw her hands up in frustration.

 

Okay Koda, think. You used it last night right? Yeah. I brushed my hair before bed. Where was that?

 

The bathroom! Right!

 

She stood up and slid her bedroom door open*. The house was quiet--which meant that Danielle was still asleep. Koda gingerly tiptoed to the bathroom and immedietly began to feel around the sink and the back of the toilet.

 

Yet her hairbrush was nowhere to be found.

 

Oh this is getting ridiculous.

 

Koda tottered back off to her room in defeat. Well, this was a great way to start off a Saturday.

 

Suddenly, a light tapping graced her ears.

 

What..?

 

The taps formed a rythmn. Three slow taps, then four rapid ones. It grew quiet, then this pattern was repeated.

 

Koda smiled.

 

"Ahh, I remember now!" she said aloud, walking over to the window and opening it. "You were coming over!"

 

The familar body slid through her window and stood up straight and tall. "Yeah," said the voice, "We agreed on it last Friday. Don't you remember?"

 

Koda smiled. "Yes Ed. Sorry."

 

Edward Elric grinned and pat his friend on the head. "Sorry I'm late, I had to make sure my chores were finished or my Dad would throw a fit," he said, brushing his golden blonde bangs out his equally golden eyes. Koda laughed. "Seven is late?"

 

"We agreed on six. Y'know, so we could get to the docks."

"Oh yeah!" Koda said, excited, "The Waterwheel Carnival!"

 

Edward smiled, taking a seat on her bed. "Yup. I packed a backpack full of water, money, and snacks too." He stood up and took Koda's hand in his own. "See?"

 

He placed her hand on the backpack so she could feel it and it's content. Her fingers made it's way to the rusted zipper and then inside, where she gripped a couple water bottles. "Yeah, you sure are prepared!" she said, giggling. When she was all done examining the contents, she sighed. "Hey do you know where I may have put my hairbrush?"

 

"Right here," he said, passing her a hairbrush he found near the window.

 

"Ah, yes! Thank you! I'll be right back, I'm gonna go wash up," she said, smiling as she walked away.

 

Edward waved to her, but it's not like she could see him. He lay down on her bed and let out a frustrated sigh.

 

Why did she have to wear those bandages over her eyes?

 

She never told him why, exactly, only that she had "seen enough of the world's corruption, and just wanted to block it out." When she had first started doing it, he figured she'd take them off in about a week.

 

That was when they were eight.

They were both 18 now.

 

Ten years.

 

It was amazing, how she adapted to life so casually.  She knew her home floorplan inside and out, so she never bumped into things. She had an amazing sense of hearing, so she always knew when he was here to visit her because of a "tap-code" they'd developed together.

 

But still...

 

He wanted to see her eyes. The mystery drove him insane.

But she refused to take them off.

 

Ed had even asked Danielle once of why Koda had willingly taken away her eyesight. She had said nothing, only taking another sip of her coffee and glancing at the burn mark that consumed her left forearm. "She..." she began, then appeared to choke up. "She just doesn't want to see things for how they really are. It's like her way of hiding."

 

What she was hiding from, he was unsure.

And she wouldn't tell him, no matter how much he begged.

 

His train of thought was derailed when Koda came back in and sat next to him. "Hey you, scoot! I have to get dressed!"

 

He grinned. "Well alright, but hurry. You know they only sell tickets for so long before they close off the docks. And today's the last day the carnival is in town!"

 

"Yes, yes, I get it! Now get!!"

 

As he left her room, he felt a grin creep onto his face. Well, who cared about that? The two of them were going to have fun today, just like they did every weekend.

 

Only today would be special.

Author's Note

*Although Koda lives in America, she lives in a Japanese style home, which means that the doors slide open and closed, and you're required to take your shoes off when entering.

Reviews

[Keevan]

At least she's still bubbly Koda. :3 I was a bit worried she'd be mute!

[Angie Diane♥&hea..]

This was a good chapter. I would figure it would be from what she endured when she was a child. It's really hard to see what she had to see...I would understand why she would have the bet her father did something to her eyes. Thanks for sharing. :3